A Promised Barn Tour

Fasten up your seatbelts because here we go! This is easily the fanciest barn I have ever boarded, and I am enjoying it so much. Join me on a day-in-the-life tour!

The Drive Up/Pig's Digs

My view (though, usually I am IN the car...)

Guinness is in the front turnout, which is awesome because his face often greets me as I drive up.

Obviously not running to greet me here...

Pig's companions are three monster-sized warmbloods of various breeding. The biggest one is an Irish Sport Horse, the black mare is a Percheron cross, and the other bay gelding, I believe, is Dutch. Don't quote me on that. Only quote me that they dwarf my little TB.

The view of the farm from Pig's pasture.

The field is complete with a nice sized shelter/mini barn, and when it is hot the horses are often found inside the barn and under the fans. (The fans are on a thermostat that turns them on automatically when the temperature hits a certain point. Super cool!)

Note the fans. These are very important, as it has been hotter than 9 kinds of hell out here...

The barn also has three stalls. The horses up here are fed individually. I like that, it seems to cut down on the snarky behavior and inevitable bite marks. The stalls can also be used in case of stall-rest.

The horses think it's hilarious to stick their heads in the tack room and beg for apples...

The other side of the barn has a cross tie and a tack room, which is where I store all my things. It's very bare-bones, but works for me!

This is an unhappy crosstied horse. Why? First, the ties are too high for him. Second, he has to pee.

Once Guinness is all tacked up, we leave the pasture, mount up, and head out for adventure...

There's this nice little walkway connecting Pig's pasture and the main barn. Plus side, it's on a slight hill, so we always get a little bit of hill training in daily!

When we get to the main barn, we have to decide whether we want to ride in the outdoor arena ...

Gorgeous views, a horse-eating gazebo, and crushed blue stone footing. Zero shade makes this an unpopular choice during the hot midday and afternoon rides. Also, horse-eating demons live in the woods, I guess.

or the indoor...

Impeccable sand/fiber footing and cool breezes make this a popular choice all the time. That often means this ring can be super crowded. It's also hard to take photos or video in here due to the contrast of dark interior with bright windows. 

or the sand ring (no photos) with the jumps, or on the lanes around the property, or go for a trail ride on the miles (and miles, and miles) of maintained conservation trails behind the property...

So lovely, and maintained, and lovely, and manicured, and lovely, and ... you get it.

Basically we are never bored finding a place to ride.

The main barn is beautiful. It's really geared for people who have the money to spend on a facility this nice and the detailed care that goes along with it.

Image from barn website.

There is a huge staff devoted to the horses and maintenance of the property. I've been impressed by everyone and the level of care at every turn. Each horse is looked over as if they were the treasure of the barn, and the staff talks as if each one was their own.

My favorite part is the wash stalls...

Of course, the walk from the main barn to Pig's little barn is kind of long...

The view from the main barn towards Pig's pasture. See my car? The little white dot? Yeah...

I'm not sure how much fun this will be come winter, but I think I'm up to the challenge.

Overall, it's an amazing place and I am so happy we landed here!